Rail-joint.



PATENTBD JULY 18, 1905.

I R. H. IRELAND. RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 3. 1904.

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RAIL JOINT.

APPLIGATION FILED no.3, 1904.

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NITED STATES iatented July is, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAIL-JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 794,715, dated July 18, 1905.

Application filed December 3,1904. Serial No. 235,352.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, ROBERT H. IRELAND, of the city and county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail-Joints, of which the following is a full, complete, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are hereby made part thereof.

The object of my invention is to produce a rail-joint which will support the ends of the rails in absolute and accurate alinement while the wheels are passing over them and at the same time so constructed as not to interfere with expansion and contraction, also to dispense with the usual bolts and nuts and the holes through the webs of the rails and to substitute wedges of a simple form, which being driven into suitable mortises hold the component parts of the device securely together.

Figure 1 is a top view of my device, showing it secured in position upon the rails. Fig. 2 is a sideview. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view of one of the mortises before the wedges are driven in. Fig. 3 is an end view showing a section of one of the rails in place. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4; I of Fig. 1 and viewed in the direction shown by the arrow. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of one of the wedges, taken along the line 4 4 of Fig. I viewed in the direction shown by the arrow. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional View of a wedge, taken along the line 6 6 of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a similar view taken along the line 7 7 of Fig. 5. Fig. 8 is an inside view of one of the side plates removed from the rail. Fig. 9 is aview, partly in section, taken along the line 9 9 of Fig. 8.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

It R are the extremities of the rails, against the webs and bases of which are secured the plates P P, which form the principal members of the joint. These plates, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, are so shaped as to completely embrace the said extremities of the rails except at the heads of the rails and are in all respects similar, so that it will be sufiicient to describe one of them only. The upper part of each plate resembles an ordinary fish-plate,

except that it is provided with webs (marked w) to stiffen the angle between the portions of the said plate bearing against the web P and the portion bearing against the upper side of the base of the rails P In addition the said plates are provided with a lower portion 19 (shown in detail in Figs. 8 and 9,) which passes beneath the bases of the rails, and the said lower portions are also each provided with two mortises (marked M) in all respects alike and into each of which two wedges G G are driven, one from each side. The mortises M M extend downward, so that the wedges Gr Gr pass beneath the base of the rail, as shown in Fig. 4, and the wedges G G have their upper sides grooved into sharp corrugations, as shown in Figs. 2, 6, and 7, as well as being suitably sharpened or pointed, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, to enable them to be easily entered in the mortises. Each mortise M is provided on its inside with a suitable cutting edge C, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9, this cutting edge being situated to one side of the said mortise M, so as not to interfere with the cutting edge of the mortise of the opposite plate P. The plates P P are formed of some tough and fairly hard matev rial, as cast-steel, and the wedges are of softer material, such as wrought-iron. When the wedges G G are driven into the mortises, the cutting edges C G force their way into the Wedges, as shown in Fig. 4, in such a way as to form a notch or depression back of the point of the wedge, this actionbeing assisted by the elastic nature of the plate 39, which allows the mortise M to spring downward as the wedge enters and to draw upward as the wedge is driven in. The lower sides of the wedges G Gr, as shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7, are hollowed, so as to facilitate the driving of the wedges over the cutting edges G (J. After the wedges have been driven in the corrugations upon them flatten somewhat and enable them to take a firm frictional grip upon the base of the rail. The stiflening-webs S are provided to strengthen the lower part 29 of the plate P and also the angle formed between the parts 12 and p To apply the joint, the ends of the rails are brought into alinement in the usual way and the plates P P placed on each side. The wedges G G are then driven in from opposite sides, the operation of the cutting edges and corrugations tending to make their withdrawal increasingly difficult as the driving process advances. The mortises M M, as shown in Fig. 9, may be made with outwardly-slanting sides, (shown somewhat exaggerated) which has somewhat the same holding effect as the cutting edges C. It will be also apparent that any downward pressure on the rail (see Fig. 4)'will make the wedge G hold more securely. The lower portions 3 of the plates also act as tie-plates and prevent the end of the rail from cutting into the ties T T, as shown in Fig, 2.

Having now fully illustrated and described my invention, what I desire particularly to claim is 1. A rail-joint having side plates, and horizontal, interlocking wedges for retaining the said side plates in position.

2. A rail-joint having side plates fitted with mortises, and wedges fitting into said mortises from either side for retaining said side plates in position.

3. A rail-joint having side plates fitted with mortises, and wedges passing transversely from either side beneath the rail andfitting into said mortises, for retaining said side plates in position.

4. A rail-joint having side plates fitted with mortises having cutting edges, and wedges driven into said mortises, the said cutting edges forming notches in the said wedges and retaining the said wedges in position.

5. Arail-joint having side plates fitted with lnortises having cutting edges, and wedges having corrugated sides and passing beneath the rail, the said cutting edges forming notches in said wedges for retaining said wedges in position, and the corrugated sides formingv a frictional contact with the base of the rail.

6. A rail-joint having side plates fitted with mortises, and wedges fitting into the said mortises and having longitudinally corrugated sides for retaining said wedges in position.

ROBERT H. IRELAND. Witnesses:

H. W. HILLI-IoUsE, J. SMYLIE KUINE. 

